Retaining means for expansible lasts



April 1948. J. s. KAMBQRIAN 2,433,921

R BTAIHING'IBMIS FOR E XPANSIBLE LASTS Filed Nov. 27, 1946 Patented Apr. 6, 1948 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,438,921 RETAINING Means ron EXPANSIBLE ms'rs Jacob S. Kamborian, West Newton, Mass. Application November 27, 1946, Serial No. 712,617 4 Claims. (01. 12-103) customarily known as California" or "forcelasted shoes, the upper is stitched to the insole or sock lining before the last is introduced. It is then necessary to introduce the last in order to distend the upper and to form a support for the shoe during subsequent stages of its manufacture. However, the introduction of a full-sized last into such a unit, comprising the united upper and sock lining, is quite diflicult and often results in bursting the upper at its heel end or in tearing the lining. Accordingly, it has been proposed to use for this purpose a last which is longitudinally expansible and contractible so that it may be introduced into the upper assembly while contracted and thereafter expanded to place the upper under distending stress, the last then being held in the expanded condition so long as may be requisite. Such a last, with one desirable means for holding it expanded, is disclosed in my copending application for Letters Patent, Serial No. 574,276, filed January 24, 1945, which issued as Letters Patent No. 2,427,354 on September 16, 1947. As disclosed in the aforesaid application, the retaining device for holding the device extended comprises a slidable, spring-pressed latch carried by the forepart of the last and which is engageable with a simple notch in one of the last-guiding rods. While this is a very efiective arrangement and much simpler than some which have heretofore been suggested, it does require the formation of chambers in the opposed faces of the wooden last parts for its accommodation; the notching of one of the guide rods; the provision and installation of a spring, and assembly operations, all of which add to the expense of last manufacture, and in cases where the upper is subjected to very substantial stress in expanding the last, difficulty is sometimes found in releasing the latch due to the small size of the ing or handle available for use in manipulating it.

One object of the present invention is to provide a very simple and inexpensive retaining de- 2 vice for holding the last expanded. A further ob- Ject is to provide a retaining device which is very easy of manipulation; which is accurate in respect to the maximum length to which the last may be expanded and held; and which affords a handle or grip of very substantial size for engagement by the operator's fingers whereby sumcient pull may readily be exerted to remove the device from the last. A further object is to provide last-holding means which is very inexpensive and which consists of a single unitary piece of material, and which is capable of long use without probability of deterioration. Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will be pointed out in the following more detailed description wherein:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of an expansible last fully expanded and held expanded by the use Of the holding means of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the last of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a section substantially on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2, but to larger scale, showing the holding device in Place and indicating the mode of removing it; and

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the retaining device removed from the last.

Referring to the drawings, the improved holding or locking device of the present invention is shown in association with a shoe last of the iongitudinally expansible type comprising the heel portion I and the forepart portion 2. The parts I and 2 are each provided with a spindle-receiving socket 3 and 4, respectively, and their opposed faces 5 and 6 are substantially flat, parallel and approximately vertical. The heel and forepart portions of the last are guided for rectilinear movement toward and from each other by means of a pair of vertically spaced, rigid, parallel guide rods 1 and 8, here shown as fixed at their rear ends in the heel portion l and having their forward portions arranged to slide in parallel horizontal bores 9 and III in the forepart portion of the last. As illustrated, the guide rods 1 and 8 are cylindrical and have their axes directly above one another.

The holder ll (Fig. 4) of the present invention is here illustrated as consisting of a single unitary mass of material, for example, metal, wood or plastic. Conveniently this holder may be an aluminum casting, since aluminum is light in weight but sufliciently rigid and strong for the purpose and cheap enough to make it practical.

This holder, as here illustrated, has a body portion l2 which is bifurcated so that in vertical section it is of substantially inverted U-shape I claims.

. 3 comprising the spaced. downwardly directed legs I! and I4. These legs are spaced laterally a distance sufficient to admit the guiderods land 8 between them, so that when in operative position the holder may readily be straddled over and suspended upon the upper guide rod IS. The leg l4 is long enough to engage the lower guide rod 8 when the holder is suspended upon the upper guide rod, thus to assist in properly retaining the holder in the upright position. If desired, both of the legs to and I l may be of this length, although to save material and decrease the weight it is preferred to make the leg i3 shorter so that it does not reach down to engage the lower guide rod 8. As illustrated in Fig, 4, the end facw it dimensions as the body portion of the holder, and

for ready use in manipulating the holder it is pre-- ferred to make this handle portion in the iorm u of an open hook of such curvature that the op erator may readily engage this hook with his T11. ger so as readily to apply the necessary lifting force to remove the holder from between the races 5 and d of the lost.

In using this device, the last is placed within the shoe upper and is then ended by suitable expanding means comprising spindles which en= gage the spindle holes 3 and 6, respectively. When the last has been fully expanded, thus placing the upper under longitudinal tension, the holder i i is inserted between the faces 5 and a of the last and the expanding force is slightly relaxed, thereby to enable the faces 5 and b to approach very slightly and thus grip the holder ii firmly between them. Since the holder is rigid and substantially incompressible, the last parts are held at a definite predetermined disc apart, the holder being retained in position by the pressure of the faces it and 6 induced by the elastic tension of the upper. The holder will thus remain in position as long as may be desired, but when the last is to be removed, the iorepart and heel portions of the last are again moved apart slightly so that the operator may grip the handle ll of the holder with his finger and readily pull the holder out from between the last parts.

The dimensions of the holder are such that when it is in operative position between the last parts it is not exposed outside of the confines of the last so that it does not in any way interfere with the operations involved in the completion of the shoe. The holder may be placed in operative position whether the last be arranged with its spindle holes 3 and 4 directed upwardly or whether the last he inverted so that its bottom is uppermost.

While one desirable embodiment of the invention has been illustrated by way of example, it is to be understood that the invention is broadly inclusive of any and all modifications and equivalents falling within the scope of the appended I claim:

I l. The retaining device for use with alongitupendent heel and forepart portions having subparts, and handle means for manipulating the rea parallel legs spaced apart laterally a distance stantially parallel, opposed faces and a guide rod fixedat one end in one of the last parts and sliding in a bore in the other last part, said retaining device comprising a body portion having substantially parallel front and rear surfaces spaced apart a distance equalling the desired maximum spacing of the desired last parts, said body portion comprising means for engagement with the guide rod, thereby to suspend the retaining device in the proper operating position between the last taining device.

' 2. The retaining device for use with a longitudinally expansible shoe last, comprising independent heel and forepart portions having substantially parallel, opposed faces and a pair of parallel guide rods disposed one above the other, each guide rod being fixed at one end in one of the last parts and sliding in a bore in the other last part, said retaining device comprising a substantially rigid body portion having parallel front and rear surfaces spaced apart a. distance equalling the desired maximum spacing of the last parts, said body portion being bifurcated to provide downwardly directed legs designed to receive the upper guide rod, at least, between them, one at least of said legs being of a length to permit it to engage the lower guide rod when the retain-I device is suspended from the upper guide rod, and handle means for manipulating the retaining device.

3. The retaining device for use with a lon itudinally expanslble shoe last,'comprising independent heel and forepart portions having substantially parallel, opposed faces and a pair of parallel guide rods disposed one above theother, each guide rod being fixed at one end in one'of the last parts and sliding in a bore in the other last part, said retaining device comprising a unitary mass of material defining a substantially rigid body portion which is bifurcated to provide substantially parallel, downwardly directed legs, the legs being so laterally spaced that the body portion y be straddled over the guide rods and suspended on the upper rod, one leg being long enough to engage the lower rod when the retaining device is so suspended, the body portion having an upwardly extending hook portion designed for engagement with. the user's fingers in manipulating the device. v

4. The retaining device for use with a longitudinally expansible shoe last, comprising independent heel and forepart portions having substantially parallel, opposed faces and a pair of parallel guide rods disposed one above the other, each guide rod being fixed at one end in one of the last parts and sliding in a bore in the other last part, said retaining device comprising a body portion of inverted U-shape having substantially slightly exceeding the diameter of the upper guide rod and designed to receive the guide rods between them, one at least of the legs of the device lbeing of a length to engage both guide rods, the body portion being of a front-to-rear thickness equaling the desired maximum spacing of the opposed surfaces of the last parts, and a handle member of a front-to-rear width substantially equaling that of the body portion of the device, said handle member being in the form of an open hook for the reception of the fingerof the user.

JACOB S. KAMBORIAN. 

